Putting tragedy and terrorism behind and acknowledging only joy, laughter and camaraderie. That was the atmosphere on Marathon Monday (aka Patriots Day, April 21) in Boston, as observed by two Ipswich residents.

Jason Wertz, 39, and Phoebe Howe, 18, hit the road for 26.2 miles from Hopkinton to Boston in the name of Bright Happy Power. They were two of 15 marathon finishers from Ipswich.

Bright Happy Power, founded in Ipswich in memory of the late Jessie Doktor by her parents Chris and Gail, started out by providing support for cancer patients in Boston. However, that is just the tip of the iceberg.

"Bright Happy Power’s mission is to place hope, happiness and empowerment into the hands and lives of children and families facing life-threatening and catastrophic challenges," reads the website, www.brighthappypower.org.

Bright Happy Power has provided everything from essentials (toiletries, food, etc.) to laptops for cancer patients and their families, and beyond.

"They’ve also started to expand and have been doing some global stuff in the Philippines, supporting families who are dealing with traumatic situations," said Wertz.

"Jessie was my little sister Charlotte’s best friend," said Phoebe Howe. "I had done the road bike ride Coast of Hope, the 100-kilometer ride, and I had done other physical challenges for the organization. If I was going to do this big of a thing [the marathon], then I wanted to keep it connected to Bright Happy Power."

Last year, Bright Happy Power reached out and helped the victims of the 2013 Boston Marathon terrorist attack and their families. It only made sense that two supporters of Bright Happy Power should tie up their sneakers and hit the marathon course themselves as the whole city celebrated and rose above tragedy and hatred.

"I’ve never run a marathon before," said Wertz. "I had done a half-marathon and a 16-mile warm-up race in the winter in Dover, N.H. I know the Doktors, and it’s such a great charity that means a lot to me."

"I’ve never seen anything except for the finish line," said Howe. "We always went to the finish line every year, so it was cool to see the whole course for the first time ever. Being 18 and able to run for the first time, I hope the fans keep coming. I hope the support stays at this caliber. It was very emotional."

Last year, the Howe family was not right at the finish line, but about 15 minutes walk away. They heard about the attack as the news spread down the course.

"We had left for home about 15 minutes before the bombs went off and we were a couple blocks away. If we were still where we were watching from, we might have heard the bombs," said Howe. "All of a sudden, everyone around us was on their cell phones, and this wave of terror spread throughout. We ended up walking to Cambridge, to where my father works. By then, all cell phone communication was shut down. My father drove us home and I really only started to learn about everything a day or two later."

Page 2 of 2 - Howe had told her parents even before the bombs exploded that she wanted to run in her first eligible year. "After the attack, I told my Mom I still wanted to run it," said Howe.

The run itself

Fast forward to April 21, 2014. Wertz ended up crossing the finish line second among all Ipswich residents, coming in at three hours, nine minutes, eight seconds (3:09:08).

"It was amazing and unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before, running or otherwise," said Wertz, whose wife Michele and sons Will, Joe and Paul were along the course to cheer on their father. They were certainly in good company.

"The whole Boston community, from start to finish, just packed the course with people. There were a lot of Boston chants and U.S.A. chants, and I saw signs for Martin Richard [8-year-old bombing victim]. You were aware of last year, but everything was immensely inspiring," said Wertz. "I was in the fourth wave, and people had already been watching the race for an hour and a half. Two hours later, they were still out in full force, cheering their lungs out."

Wertz said that he was "just enjoying finishing today," but that he is going to consider returning in 2015, especially after taking in the atmosphere of the 118th running.

Howe was also swept up in the motivation of the millions along the course.

"The run was hard on my knees and hard on my whole body, but you could not have stopped running. You might have wanted to, but everyone pushed you forward," said Howe, who finished her first marathon at 4:58:20. "I met a lot of amazing people on my run and kept pace with some people from western Massachusetts. It was great to hear their stories and hear their reasons. There were a lot of tears."

Howe managed to prepare for the marathon despite a very busy schedule. She had school, homework and a part-time job at Ipswich's Coastal Greengrocer. On top of all that, she was also a member of the Ipswich High swimming team this past winter.

"I was admitted early decision to Wesleyan University in Connecticut, so I had the advantage that I didn’t have to focus on college applications," said Howe. "I had to do 10-and 20-mile runs after school. It was very hard to do at the beginning, being on the swimming team and with the winter weather being so bad. I also had three-hour field hockey practices on Sundays, as I’ll be playing field hockey at Wesleyan."

But, she got out on Monday morning and completed 26.2 miles. It wasn’t just the masses of fans and supporters along the entire course that helped move her feet, though.

"I had ‘Bright Happy Power’ written on my wrist," she said, "and I looked at that every once in a while to remind myself why I was running."